Addiction is a condition that a person has to a substance or activity that is pleasurable and results in the person’s inability to complete many of their daily tasks or interfere with their ordinary responsibilities. The person who is addicted often times neglects taking care of themselves and their health starts to decline. Some addictions cost people their family relationships as well. Many times people who have an addiction may not be aware that their behavior is out of control, causing problems for themselves and others (Addictions, 2017). There are many misconceptions out there concerning additions. You can often hear people say things such as the person is just weak and can’t control themselves. Some people label others as lost …show more content…
Bad habits and addictions are in fact two different things altogether. Habits are things that are automatic, regular actions that a person enacts on their own (Misconceptions of Addictions, 2017). An example of a bad habit would be biting the fingernails, being unable to sit still. Addictions on the other hand are biological attachments to consumption of substances (Misconceptions of Addictions, 2017). One of the most popular myths concerning drug addiction is that is a voluntary behavior. According to Alan Leshner, a former Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a person starts out as a casual drug user which is a voluntary decision. Then as time goes on the person goes from voluntary drug user to being a compulsive drug abuser (Leshner, 2017). This is because according to Lesher, there are dramatic and toxic changes in the …show more content…
Several states have decriminalized the use and possession of the drug and other states have made it a medical issue. This is however still in conflict with Federal Law and marijuana is still classified as an illegal substance. Many proponents will say that it is non-addictive. This too is a myth. There is a thing called marijuana use disorder, which 30 percent of marijuana users develop (Misconceptions of Addictions, 2017). Just like other forms of drug abuse, the frequent use of the drug results in alteration of the brain which then results in the addiction and according to the research, about nine percent of marijuana users will become dependent and addicted to the drug (Misconceptions of Addictions.,